1. Technical Field
This invention relates to a beverage-holding tray and, more particularly, to a portable beverage-holding tray with an attached ice bucket.
2. Prior Art
Methods for storing stemmed drinking glasses in common use are not entirely satisfactory. The practice is widespread of setting glasses rim down on a shelf, which may not itself be clean.
Numerous rack designs of both the wall-hanging and self-supporting type have been developed for storing and supporting stemmed glassware and wine bottles or beverage containers. One common structure comprises an overhead wine bottle rack with an arrangement of rails or slots for supporting stemmed wine glasses in the inverted position. Another type of stemmed glass storage unit keeps the glasses inverted and the stem and base are held in a circular opening made accessible by a radial slot.
With these type of support structures the common problem is that the inverted stemmed ware is allowed to hang free, subject to possible damaging contact with one another if the support rack is jostled or impacted in any manner. The result, of course, is broken stemmed ware. Additionally, the slotted support arrangements, either the rail type or the radial slot type, provide no means to prevent accidental dislodging of the stemmed glassware if the unit is tilted or jarred.
At parties where food and beverage items are being served, it is difficult for a guest to hold a plate with food and a beverage. Often the only solution is for the guest to use both hands, one holding the plate and the other holding the beverage goblet. With both hands being occupied, the guest must set down one or the other of the plate and goblet to shake hands, open doors, load food items onto the plate or pour a beverage into the goblet. Otherwise a guest must exhibit their dexterity by attempting to hold the plate and goblet in the same hand and use the free hand for the aforementioned tasks. Sometimes attempts at this dexterity leads to spills and other accidents.
Accordingly, a need remains for a portable beverage-holding tray that would safely store and transport a variety of beverage containers to overcome the above-noted shortcomings.